Press Release: WBO president Paco Valcarcel has expressed both surprise and please that hip hop star Jay-Z has established a boxing promotional company. Valcarcel welcomed Jay-Z's Roc Nation Sports, which earlier this week surprised the boxing world by winning a purse bid for the WBO middleweight title defense of Peter Quillin against Matt Korobov. In winning the promotional rights to Quillin-Korobov, Roc Nation outbid AMerica's two most powerful promoters, Top Rank and Golden Boy.

“I’m definitely surprised by their participation,” said WBO President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel of Roc Nation’s first foray into the world of boxing. “On behalf of the WBO I welcome Jay Z and his company Roc Nation and wish them nothing but success in their quest to put on quality boxing events and represent well the fighters they eventually sign.”

“We are honored that they (Roc Nation Sports) have chosen a WBO world championship contest to mark their entrance to the sport as boxing promoter and look forward to working with them,” said Valcarcel of the fight proposed for November 8, 2014 at an undetermined venue in either Washington, DC or New York City.

With a bid of $1,904,840 Roc Nation Sports, the company founded by the music superstar, won Monday’s purse bid at the WBO Headquarters in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to promote Quillin’s (31-0, 22 KOs) mandatory WBO defense against Korobov (24-0, 14 KOs).